


The Hand Life Dealt You

by ToasterLord



Category: Scooby Doo - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:20:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25548862
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToasterLord/pseuds/ToasterLord
Summary: The Gang arrive at a popular card game tournament to see some friends participate. But when contestants begin disappearing, and rumours of a Cursed Card arise, their enjoyment might need to take a backseat while they solve this mystery.
Kudos: 3





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys!
> 
> Welcome to another Scooby Doo fanfiction! For this one, I wanted to combine it with my love for Yu-Gi-Oh!, so I decided to set this one at a fictional card game tournament. I hope you guys enjoy this one just as much as my other fics! 
> 
> Happy reading!

The auditorium was packed.

This only came about once per year – the annual Dusk Adventure Tournament. Competitors and fans of the game were bustling about the venue, visiting some of the many souvenir stands that lined the walls, selling everything that a card collector could ever desire. It was like any other convention – food stands selling varieties of overpriced, unhealthy snacks, secondhand card stalls were hosting trading sessions between fans, and the guest band were playing nostalgic music from iconic fantasy movies. The crowd itself was buzzing with excitement; the first round was due to start very soon, and people were already in heated debates as to who would go to the end. 

Two teens peeled off from the main room and meandered their way down one of the convention centre corridors. There were a few equipment stalls down the hall, and the teens passed a few other individuals who were windowshopping the booths. As they moved further away from the throng of the tournament, the sounds of the crowd began to dissipate.

“Dude, you’re crazy if you think that Nico Matthews has what it takes to beat Boyd Barker” one of the two scoffed

His friend shook his head.

“Nico is an underdog, he’s keeping his best cards under wraps until the final round, so no one thinks he’s a threat”

“Well, they’d better be good if what I heard about Boyd is true” the first boy said.

With a quick glance around him to ensure they were alone, he beckoned his friend to follow him into a side corridor that led to a supply closet.

“This is top secret information, but I was able to snag the deck lists for some of the duelists in the tournament” he whispered, pulling a few sheets of paper out of his pocket.

“Joe that’s illegal!” his friend hissed, throwing a darting glance nervously in the direction of the main corridor.

“Shh Mark, if you keep it quiet it’ll be fine!” Joe retorted, “look here; the other week, Boyd tweeted that he’s ‘steal the how with only 50 cards the entire time’, but when you look at his deck list…” he jabbed at the paper, “… he’s only registered 49”

“So?” Mark looked at the paper, unimpressed.

“Soooo it means he has one more card that he’s keeping secret and not using for the duels” Joe stared at mark wide eyed, “and do you remember how he sort of hinted that he had… you know… that card?”

Realisation dawned on Mark’s face.

“You don’t mean??” 

“Ohhh yeah” Joe nodded.

“So, I can tell from that that he’s planning on making it to the finals and stealing the show entirely with his ‘secret weapon’” Joe concluded smugly.

Mark was staring at Joe as Joe grinned back at him. But then Joe’s smile fell. 

Mark’s look of shock wasn’t the look he had a few moments ago. It was more… scared. 

“Mark?” Joe nervously chuckled.

Mark was just staring. But not at Joe. But past him instead. 

Joe didn’t want to turn around… but he did. 

A tall spindly figure towered over the two boys. She was draped from head to toe in black silk, an elaborate veil covering her face. An evilly glinting crown sat atop her head. Her hands were grey and warped, her razor-sharp fingernails basically claws. In one of her hands she held a silver staff almost as tall as her. A deep green gem sat affixed to the top in a silver clawed hand. 

The two boys were frozen on the spot. The creature in front of them let out a low growl, raising the staff high. The boys tried to let out a scream but it was too late – the creature took one decrepit hand and began to lift the veil covering her face.  
Without warning there was a blinding flash, impossibly bright. 

When the flash subsided, they were gone. 

*

“Dusk Adventure! The best card game ever known!” Velma breathed. 

The gang strolled into the Los Angeles convention centre, gazing around in awe at the immense amount of decorations and stands that lined the walls.

“Seems like it” Fred chuckled, dodging around several groups of excited youngsters, “I haven’t seen crowds this big outside of a football game!”

“Like, it’s actually pretty good. I got a bit into it back a few years ago. Never really did it competitively but it was pretty funky to play” Shaggy put his hands in his pockets, laughing quietly.

Daphne smiled, taking off her glasses now that they had moved out of the bright sunlight.

“Well it sure is lucky you have the connections in order to get us guest access here!” she patted Velma’s arm.

Velma smiled back. The group made their way past all the different souvenir stalls, looking over the huge variety of things that they sold.

“They really don’t play round with these things do they?” Fred blew out a breath of awe as they moved past a lively auction for a large figurine of what looked like a dragon-wizard. 

“Ohhh boy they definitely don’t!” Shaggy stopped in his tracks, putting a hand on Scooby’s head, “Scoob ol’-buddy-ol’-pal do you see what I see??”

The Great Dane’s tail was wagging ferociously.

“Reah reah!” he slobbered.

“Like, that has to be the biggest food court in a convention I’ve ever seen! I don’t know where to begin!”

“Well, the decision is easier for you, cause as special guests, your meals are on us” came a voice from the side.

Two people approached them, a tall man with long blonde hair, and a woman with short red hair swept to the side. It was the woman who had spoken, and she was beaming at them as she held her hand out to greet them.

“Kerry Thorinson, it’s a pleasure to meet you all,” she shook their hands in turn, “and this is my husband, Gildar”

The blonde man grinned as well as he shook their hands as well. Both of them were dressed rather nicely, Gildar in a blazer over a shirt and Kerry in a light blue blouse complete with a sparkling necklace.

“On… on you??” Shaggy and Scooby repeated, mouth’s hanging open.

“Yep, you’re here as our special guests, so it’s only fair that we show you this kindness”

“They might regret that soon” Fred whispered to Daphne, who giggled.  
Breaking out of their shellshocked trance, Shaggy and Scooby immediately raced off to the food court, pushing through groups of bewildered contestants. 

“Kerry Thorinson… where have I heard that name before?” Daphne mused, tapping her lip before it clicked in her head, “it was at the hospital! Just after the last case!”

Kerry nodded and smiled again.

“If I’m being formal, it’s Doctor Kerry Thorinson”

“That’s it!” Daphne clasped her hands together, “I saw an article in the paper recently where they interviewed you about the struggles of being a surgeon”

“It is a tough life sometimes” Gildar put his arm around Kerry, “but if there’s anyone who can manage that, it’s Kerry” 

“Well you also work hard to make it all possible” Kerry responded, holding his hand, “you’re so dedicated to your team, its impressive”

“That’s who you are!” Fred announced, eyes brightening, “Gildar Thorinson, the soccer player!”

“Guilty” Gildar chuckled

“You’re last few games have been almost record setting!” Fred fawned, in awe of being in the presence of a sports-star. 

“Like, how do you find time to play Dusk Adventure with all that going on?” Shaggy asked with a mouthful of food, returning from the foodcourt with a mountain of plates

“Oh, no, it’s not me that plays the game, it’s my kids” Kerry waved her hand

She called over to two teenagers nearby – a boy with blonde spikey hair dressed in black complete with a few chains and studs, and a girl with long red hair flipped over her shoulder dressed in a long cream cardigan over a green floral top. The two were dressed as opposites, but their faces were incredibly similar. 

“This is Bjorn,” Kerry put her hand on the boy’s shoulder, “and this is Kerry” she put her other hand on the girl’s shoulder.

“You’re both called Kerry?” Fred asked

“It’s a tradition in our family” Kerry Jr. responded, “Kerry is a name passed down through generations. My grandma is called Kerry, as was my great grandma and I’m sure even further back than that!”

“Yeah, our family is full of weird traditions” Bjorn scoffed and rolled his eyes, “believe it or not but twins are also a common thing for us”

“Well, it’s much more common for a twin to have twins” Kerry Sr. ruffled Bjorn’s hair.

Kerry Jr. skipped over to Velma and gave her a big hug.

“Velma! I’m so glad you could make it here!”

Kerry Jr. smiled at the rest of the gang.

“Velma is like our biggest supporter! She’s always ready to challenge us as practice, and she’s actually an awesome duelist!” 

“Well you guys are so much better than me at these proper duels, I don’t think I’ve ever managed to beat Kerry yet” Velma confessed. 

“Kerry is maybe” Bjorn sighed, “don’t think the same could be said for me”  
Gildar patted Bjorn’s shoulder.

“Now you know that’s not true, you’re just as good if you put your mind to it”

“Yeah but I like to play for fun, and these guys don’t like to do that” Bjorn swept his hand around him, indicating to the crowds of players around him, “I’m only here cause Kerry said I should sign up as well”

“Hey! What did I say about putting yourself down!” Kerry punched Bjorn’s shoulder playfully, “you’re just as good!” 

Just as the twins began to bicker there came a commotion from the side. Groups began to murmur as a woman pushed through them, jabbering as she did so. The gang scrutinised her – she looked incredibly distraught; hair all awry from what would be a neatly pressed haircut, and her pristinely made-up face twisted with a look of extreme worry. She hurried from person to person, eyes frantically darting around as she continued to babble. People blinked in surprise at the sudden intrusion but shook their heads as they stared into her fearful eyes. As they watched her desperately look around, she caught sight of the group of them looking over with concern. Without hesitation she rushed over to them, sliding her handbag that had slipped down back over her shoulder.

“You… you’re Mystery Incorporated, aren’t you?” she asked breathlessly  
Fred cleared his throat.

“Yes, that’s us. Are you OK, what seems to be the problem?”

“Its my daughter! I haven’t been able to find her anywhere! She just went off to look in the shops, and that was the last time I saw her!” the woman began to tear up.

“Oh no, it’s OK” Daphne approached the woman, handing her some tissues from her own handbag, “I’m sure she’s still around her somewhere. When did she head off to the shops?” 

“That was over 4 hours ago! I’ve looked around the whole convention centre, and even outside! There’s no trace of her anywhere!” the woman began to cry, the tears streaking down her face as she trembled.

“Well, thank you for telling us” Velma informed her, “we’ll keep an eye out and ask around ourselves. She’s probably still here, just lost” 

The woman nodded slightly, but wobbled on her feet. Kerry Sr. hooked her arm under the woman’s, holding her up.

“I’m going to take her to the medical station, she looks like she’s going to faint from stress. I’ll also ask the medical staff if they’ve seen her daughter. I’ll ask her for a description of her daughter in order to help” 

With a wave to her family, Kerry Sr. escorted the woman away through the crowds, murmuring reassuring words to her as she did so. Gildar sighed.

“Another one disappeared, what the heck is happening?”

Velma glanced at him quizzically.

“What does that mean?”

“Her daughter isn’t the only one to have gone missing here recently,” Gildar nodded in the direction Kerry Sr. and the woman went, “just yesterday when the convention first opened for its pre-tournament celebration, two boys went missing. Their parents said they were just shopping in the upper levels, but couldn’t find them when they went to look. They even waited for an hour after the convention centre closed, wondering if they were just dawdling behind, but they never showed up” 

“Jeepers!” Daphne bit her lip, “aren’t the police involved?” 

“They were called and came to check everything out, but there was no trace of them. They said that potentially the kids got caught in the crowds and got lost in the city” Gildar shrugged, “they’re still looking but they’ll have to change tactics now someone else is missing”

“Well we’re not going to let any more people go missing, we have to get to the bottom of this” Fred announced

“Like, how do we know where to begin? The police said there was no trace of them anywhere, what do we look for?” Shaggy queried, the leftovers in his arms slowly becoming forgotten.

“Well we can begin by looking into where the two boys went missing yesterday. You, Velma and Scooby check out the upper levels to see if you can find anything that can act as a clue. Daphne and I will go to talk to the woman in the medical station, see if she can notify us on anything important” 

Fred clapped his hands together

“The tournament may start tomorrow, but this mystery has already begun!”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the tournament prepares to begin, so does the investigation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry for the rather long wait for this update - things have been a bit hard for me the last few weeks, and just as I had nearly finished with an update, my computer had screen issues and had to be sent to be repaired. I hope you guys still enjoy reading!

By the time Fred and Daphne had made their way over to the medical station, the woman was lying propped up against the wall, eyes heavy, clearly having only just come around from being unconscious. Her makeup had been strewn across her face from the tears. Kerry sat next her, gently patting her back. She looked at the two of them expectantly as they approached.

“We’ve split up to look for clues, which will help us to find out any leads on a possible location, or what could have happened” Fred explained

Kerry nodded.

“Her name is Imelda Esridge, her daughter is Maria Esridge. Both had travelled at least 6 hours to get here, so that rules out any walking home from the centre” Kerry informed them, “she told me that she looks a lot like her, except with long brown hair” 

Daphne looked over Imelda and made some notes about Maria’s image: long brown hair, arched eyebrows, pale complexion. They’d be sure to keep a look out for anyone fitting that description. 

“Did she say anything to her mother before she went missing?” Fred asked

“She didn’t say much except that she’d said goodbye to her before she went shopping for some card supplies in the shops outside” Kerry indicated to the rows of shops lining the convention centre, “they said they’d meet back in an hour and a half, with Imelda going to have a coffee in the food court” 

Imelda gave a slight moan and sat up groggily.

“She said she’d meet me back at the food court… when she didn’t turn up on time I assumed she got side tracked” she mumbled

“What did you do after that” Daphne asked her sweetly, sitting down next to her

“I… went around the shops and looked for her… I asked a few of the shopkeepers if they’d seen her but after a few of them, no-one had seen her. I assumed that at that point she’d gone outside for some reason… but she wasn’t there” Imelda began to tear up again, bringing a tissue to her face. 

"Could she have gone home with someone else?" Fred queried.  
Imelda threw him a teary scowl.

"And not tell me? I didn't raise her to be stupid!" she spat, before re-composing herself, "besides, I know all the mums of the kids she's friends with, and they said they hadn't seen her at all"

"Has Maria competed in tournaments before?" Daphne inquired after thinking for a second.

Imelda took a moment to think.

"Several... I think in total it's been three in the last few years" she gained a slight smirk as she continued, "she came fourth in the last qualifier for this event, and won a smaller one last year!" 

"You must be very proud of her then" Daphne smiled again.

"Yes, she was very excited by this card game. I don't really get it, but she enjoys it and that's all that really matters"

The older woman sighed again, wringing the tissue slightly in her hands.

"Please find her, I know it's a lot to ask but... I don't have anyone else to rely on" she sniffed

Kerry patted her back. A police officer entered the medical station, announcing he had come to ask Mrs Esridge some questions. Imelda gave them a quick look before gathering her gloves and bag before shuffling out of the room after the officer. Kerry escorted the two members of Mystery Inc. out of the medical station before sighing and crossing her arms.

"Well, looks like you've got your work cut out for you. I'll try and help you as much as I can, but at this rate I'm gonna try and keep my own kids out of trouble"

Fred nodded.

"No, I totally agree. It's your priority to keep them safe until we get to grips with whats happening. I do have one question, if you could answer it"

"Go ahead, please" 

Fred took out a bit of paper and a pen, poised to write down the answer.

"Your husband told us that two other kids had gone missing, do you know their names?"

Kerry looked into the distance, thinking for a bit.

"I think Kerry said their names were Joe? And Mark? I'm not sure of their last names but their parents have put out statements on the official tournament website"

"Thank you, thats completely fine" he turned to Daphne, "we'll check those out later and see if there's any sort of link"

The two of them shook Kerry's hand before waving a goodbye and parting ways.

"Stay in touch and let me know how things develop" the doctor called to them

"We will! Tell your kids good luck in the first rounds tomorrow!" Fred responded.  
As the two headed back towards the food court, Daphne spoke up.

"You thinking that the other two missing kids also placed high in the tournament?"

"Yep, its an obvious link when it comes to a tournament setting" he responded, "jealous competitor could be gunning to take out the competition"

"It's a bit drastic for a card game competition" Daphne blew out a breath, "but then again, when are these myteries ever sensible"

The two were glancing around the centre as they walked, scoping out any potential clues on the stands around the bottom floor. At least they were until a teenager stomping through the crowd looking at his phone knocked into Daphne's shoulder as he clomped past. 

"Hey!" Daphne exclaimed

"Watch where you're going!" the boy snarled at her, stopping to give her a glare before spinning back round again.

Daphne rolled her eyes and reached out without turning round and yanked on his bag strap. He made a slight grunting noise as he was jerked backwards to face her again.

"You'd better get some manners, or eventually you'll bump into the wrong person. Or someone on a bad day" she gave him a glare, "got it?"

Though the boy was about as tall as her, and rather stocky as well, he didnt challenge her back. Instead he mumbled an apology, pulled his bag around him and hurried back off into the crowd. Fred whistled under his breath as they began to walk again. Daphne shot him a glance.

"What?" she faced forwards again, "it's true"

"Oh I know, thats why I don't get on your bad side" he chuckled

"That's right" Daphne smirked, "and you'd better keep it that way"

*

Shaggy, Scooby and Velma scoped out the entire event hall from the upper levels - a sort of balcony area that stretched around the top of the central hall. It was usually used as a viewing platform for the crowds during the competition, but at the moment it was bustling with kids and adults hastily trying to get their last minute preparations for tomorrow. Just like downstairs, stalls and stands lined the walls, selling varieties of memorabilia, merchandise and equipment for people's various needs. 

"Right, we should ask some of these standowners if they remember seeing the boys. If they were up here, they must have been seen by somebody" Velma instructed.

Scooby and Shaggy nodded, wandering off to the left hand side stands while Velma checked out the right. The two of them approached a booth selling a plethora of different card holders, tins and cases. The man behind the counter beamed at them as they began to peruse the different items on the shelves. 

"Like, there's so many different ones to choose from" Shaggy exclaimed, picking up and comparing two card holders, "how would you even pick what one to get?"

"Rook the same to me" Scooby sniffed, nosing a bunch on the row below.

"It all depends what sort of style you play" responded a voice from their left.

The two of them glanced round to see a teenage girl flipping through the rows of leather card pouches. She had side-swept blonde hair covered with a brown floppy newsboy cap. She wore a brown gilet over a red longsleeved top, and a pair of bellbottom jeans. Complete with a fringed bag, she was dressed in a full vintage outfit. She smiled up at them, holding up two card holders in each hand. 

"This one has separate slots for each different types of card so you can always keep track of what cards you're using" she indicated to the one in the left hand, "and this one has a little window to show off your best card if you're more flashy" she spun the right hand one round to show off the plastic window. 

"Ohh, cool!" Shaggy exclaimed, "it's like when you put sriracha sauce in a sandwich instead of peri peri sauce, it totally switches up the sandwich entirely!"

"I mean... to put it a way, yes" the girl chuckled.

She put the two card cases back on the shelf and extended her hand.

"Carrie Reed, I'm a competitor in the tournament" 

"Oh I see" Shaggy shook her hand, "I'm Shaggy and this is Scooby. We're here to watch the tournament with some friends" 

"Shaggy and Scooby? THE Shaggy and Scooby from Mystery Inc.?" Carrie's eyes widened.

"Yep, those ones" Shaggy nodded. It was hard to go anywhere without being recognised.

"If you're here then..." she got quiet, "is there a mystery to solve"

Shaggy hesitated, mouth open slightly. He didn't know what to say, he shouldn't really tell just anyone about the details of the mystery. But then again he was supposed to be asking questions. 

"We're just looking into the disappearances of a few competitors of the card tournament that have happened over the last few days" he took out his phone to take notes, "I just wanted to ask if anyone had noticed anything out of the ordinary?"

Carrie shook her head. 

"I only turned up today"

The shopkeeper scratched his neck.

"I don't remember seeing them come into the shop. There's a lot of people that go through these shops and corridor"

Shaggy looked back around at the corridor they had just come from.

"It is a really long corridor, like, do the stands go all the way down?"

The shopkeeper shook his head as he let out a breath.

"No, the corridor is too long for that - the shops only go for a few more stands and then it's pretty much empty. I think there's just a janitor's closet in that direction," he rubbed his neck, "don't know about the janitor though. In my opinion, this place isn't as clean as I thought it would be. Seems like he's slacking"

That was interesting to note. Shaggy wrote it into his phone, just to look professional. A glint caught his eye and his eyes darted to the device hanging out of Carrie's bag. 

"Like hey, nice camera" he complimented.

Carrie's hand went to pat the bag and she gave him a smile. 

"Thanks! It's a proper vintage polaroid camera! I have it just in case I want to take any cool pics to remember the tournament by. Haven't been able to take many pictures yet though, and I don't think with everything going on that it's the right mood for happy pictures"

She sighed and took a few items up to the shopkeeper to pay for them.

"Good luck with investigating!" she called over her shoulder.

"Thank you, both you guys" Shaggy waved in response, turning round and heading back towards the middle of the hallway as Scooby plodded after him. 

The two of them waited for a moment until the familiar bright orange approached them from across the hallway.

"So did you find anything out from that stand over there?" Velma queried. 

"Kinda. We met another competitor, but she'd only arrived today so didn't really know anything. The shopkeeper did say that there was a janitors closet down the hallway, and he suspected that the janitor himself was not doing his job well enough"

"Hmm that's interesting. I wonder if there's a reason that he would be slacking off" Velma tapped her chin, "the stands I asked said that they hadn't seen anything out of the ordinary all day, even when they were setting up or packing up, which meant that this would have had to happen after the building closed or just before everything opened to set up"

"Wait, like, wouldn't one of the only people in the building at that time be the janitor?" Shaggy furrowed his brow.

Velma clicked her fingers.

"Jinkies! Good thinking Shaggy! Looks like we'll need to check out our janitor friend to see why he's been taking it easy on the cleaning duties. He might be behind something a bit more sinister"

*

The day of the tournament had dawned. The two teams had rejoined to inform them of what they had learned. Velma compiled all of the information into her laptop and was scrutinising it as they walked back into the convention centre. 

"We need to make sure to find out if these disappearances are definitely linked. So far we don't have a motive, except that they might all be high placing in the competition"

"Well if we watch the first few rounds today, we can see who's the best out of the group," Fred sighed, hands in his pockets, "we can then make some form of prediction of who could be next"

Daphne huffed and shook her head.

"God, why is that even a sentence we have to say" 

The group trudged through the bustling crowds of parents who were all gathered around the central tournament area, all waiting for the contestants to finish so the round could begin. Some were calling out words of encouragement, waving to them with big smiles on their faces. Others were quieter, mumbling quiet words to their partners, looking around nervously before keeping a close eye on wherever their kids went. The Gang were happy to see the telling bright red hair of Kerry Sr. bobbing through the crowd towards them. Soon enough, the doctor was standing in front of them, waving a slight greeting to them. 

"Hello guys. Gildar should be along any minute - the kids are just finishing getting ready"

As if on cue, the remainder of the family bustled out of the crowd, squabbling amongst each other. Gildar gave Kerry a weary look as they reached the Gang. 

"Don't you guys, like, have to be over there?" Shaggy pointed to the tournament area.

Kerry Jr. put her hands on her hips. 

"Nah not me, I'm not in this first round," she smirked at Bjorn, "but he is though"

"Yeah, yeah" Bjorn waved his hand, "I've just gotta get my stuff together" 

"If you were prepared beforehand, you wouldn't have to rush like this" Kerry Sr. tutted. 

With a final rummage Bjorn fished the last of his cards out of his bag triumphantly. He haphazardly began to organise them in his hands as he turned to leave. 

"Alright wish me luck!"

This was followed with a loud OOF followed by a sound of cards spilling onto the floor. Bjorn staggered back having been walked into by a large individual.

"Watch where you're... going" came his snide comment that was cut short when he caught sight of Daphne.

"YOU!" she jabbed her finger at him, "What did I tell you about getting manners?"

The guys face went white and he quickly scurried off again. Daphne glared agter him while crouching down to help pick up the spilled cards.

"Who is that guy?" she growled

"Boyd Barker" Kerry Jr. grumbled, "one of the most disliked players that compete here" 

"Why is he not liked?" Fred asked.

"He's just rude, a sore winner and I'm like 90% sure he cheats" Kerry Jr. turned her nose up at him

"Now Kerry you can't accuse people of that" her mother scolded, "Bjorn hurry now or you'll be late"

Bjorn nodded and picked up his final card, hurrying off as fast as he could to the tournament area. Fred leant over to Velma.

"With a personality like that, I'd say that Boyd might do anything to make sure he wins" he muttered

"And it doesn't look like he's playing in this round either. I wonder where he was in such a hurry to" she whispered in response. 

The Gang made their way over to the viewing area, Scooby and Shaggy grabbing a snack on the way (just to keep them going until brunch), so that they could watch Bjorn's match in action. After a brief message from the strern-looking old man that was in charge, the matches began. It was going well, there was a general hubbub of contestants announcing what moves they were carrying out. Everything was as it should be.

For a few minutes.

_WOOOSH_

There was a flash of blinding light and a rush of smoke. There were a few screams and gasps from the crowd, along with many confused faces. The Gang squinted at the upper rafters, trying to catch a glimpse of whoever - or whatever - was up there. They didn't have to wait long.

A harsh, raspy cackle burst out from behind the smoke, echoing coldly around the room. The smoke began to dissipate revealing the figure with in. The whole crowd gasped and some pointed up at the creature. 

It was tall, yet hunched over in an inhuman way, its entire body swamped in shimmery black robes that whipped about. A long, glittering veil covered its face, but from its hands one could see that its skin was grey and puckered, fingers ending in claw-like talons. In one mangled hand, it clasped a long twisted staff - a glowing orb sitting atop the gnarled wood. 

"Zoinks!" Shaggy yelped, Scooby jumping into his arms.

"Jeepers! What is that thing!" Daphne shrieked. 

The creature slammed the end of the staff into the ground, sending a shockwave of sound through the room. 

_"You will pay for what you have done. You will be punished for holding this tournament, and pushing me aside!"_

It jabbed a finger towards everyone.

_"Let's see how you feel when you're forgotten"_

With another spine-chilling cackle, the orb on the staff glowed impossibly bright, causing everyone to avert their eyes. More smoke billowed out across the upper platforms and cascaded down to the lower floors. When everyone refocused on the balcony, it was gone. 

"What on earth was that!?" Fred stuttered, still staring at where the creature was.

"It can't be... that just doesn't make sense..." Kerry Jr. whispered, eyes transfixed on the upper floors.

"What doesn't?" Velma demanded, "Who was that?"

Kerry Jr. turned her frightened eyes towards the Gang.

"That was Shurinax the Bewikked... but that can't be possible, because she's a Dusk Adventure card!"


End file.
